WASHINGTON, DC.- The Smithsonian’s Hirshhorn Museum presents “ColorForms,” an exhibition devoted to the exploration of color and abstract form through a variety of media, March 11 through winter 2011. Organized by associate curator Evelyn Hankins and located in the lower-level galleries, the exhibition highlights artworks from the Hirshhorn’s collection that date from 1949 to the present, including two major recent acquisitions: Paul Sharits’ four-projector film installation, “Shutter Interface” (1975) and Fred Sandback’s linear yarn sculpture “Untitled (Sculptural Study, Twelve-Part Vertical Construction)” (1990). Several paintings on loan from the National Gallery of Art’s renowned Mark Rothko holdings are also on view. After six months, a selection of works in the exhibition will rotate. “‘ColorForms’ showcases the breadth of the Hirshhorn’s collection by featuring works spanning six decades that demonstrate

PARIS.- Funny yet touching, unpredictable yet brilliant, Beat Takeshi Kitano is a multifaceted and prolific artist that has captivated the Japanese public. Comedian and host of nine TV shows ranging from the highly comical to the very serious, he is one of the most popular entertainers in his own country. Abroad, Takeshi Kitano is a widely acclaimed author and actor, and has directed ‘Sonatine’ (1993), ‘Hana-Bi’ (1997, awarded the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival) and ‘Zatôichi’ (2003), among other masterpieces of contemporary film. His compelling work gives beautiful form to the expressions of violence, solitude and childlike playfulness. He also has a love of painting, his first and most private passion. For him, painting is the ideal form of representation and it plays an important role in the creative process of his filmmaking. General Director of the Fondation Cartier , Hervé Chandès

ATHENS, GA.- The Georgia Museum of Art announces the publication of the “Corpus of Early Italian Paintings in North American Public Collections: The South.” Conceived as a massive project that would catalogue and illustrate every Italian painting on panel and canvas dating between 1250 and 1500 in public collections across North America, the “Corpus” in its first part focuses on public collections in the American South. The author, Perri Lee Roberts of Miami University, discusses more than 400 paintings, each one represented by a high-quality reproduction. Three volumes make up this publication, which covers early Italian paintings in public collections located in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Puerto Rico. In addition to a collection of 12 paintings in the Georgia Museum of Art, other collections included belong to

WEST HOLLYWOOD, CA.- PRISM , LA’s exciting new addition to the art landscape, is pleased to present it’s sophomore show, “Araki: A Perspective,” a collection of works by world renowned Japanese photographer, Nobuyoshi Araki. The exhibition will feature approximately 70 works by Araki, whose thought provoking photography has garnered international acclaim and stirred up controversy around the globe. Guests are invited to PRISM for a private preview of “Araki: A Perspective” on March 6th at 6:00PM. Nobuyoshi Araki’s works will be on display from March 6th – May 9th. Nobuyoshi Araki is Japan’s most notable & controversial photographer. Based primarily in Tokyo, Araki documents what he sees in the streets, exploring the various themes that exist in the city. With over 450 photography books to his name, Araki has explored a wide variety of topics, most notably the love of his wife, Yoko

PHILADELPHIA, PA.- The world of Cleopatra, which has been lost to the sea and sand for nearly 2,000 years, will surface in a new exhibition, “Cleopatra: The Search for the Last Queen of Egypt,” making its world premiere in June 2010 at The Franklin Institute in Philadelphia. Organized by National Geographic and Arts and Exhibitions International, with cooperation from the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities and the European Institute for Underwater Archaeology (IEASM), the exhibition will feature more than 250 artifacts, and take visitors inside the present-day search for Cleopatra, which extends from the sands of Egypt to the depths of the Bay of Aboukir near Alexandria. The exhibition about the legendary queen, who remains one of history’s greatest enigmas, debuting at The Franklin Institute from